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48-463: The pistol uses a pre-tensioned striker firing system, and is chambered in 9mm Luger and .45 ACP . The pistol uses a Browning-type locked-breech short recoil action, with a barrel cam system that is designed to reduce felt recoil. The serialized part of the pistol is a steel chassis, which is fit to a glass-filled nylon frame. The frame incorporates a Picatinny rail for mounting accessories. In September 2016, Ruger announced compact versions of

96-415: A driving band or obturation ring needed to trap propellant gases behind a projectile, and also keep the projectile centered in the barrel, when the outer shell of the projectile is only slightly smaller in diameter than the caliber of the barrel. Driving bands and obturators are used to seal these full-bore projectiles in the barrel because of manufacturing tolerances; there always exists some gap between

144-400: A side-lock mechanism, with the hammer mounted to one side rather than inline with the axis of the barrel. In the trapdoor Springfield Model 1865 (and similar) the rear of the firing pin tube within the breechblock is angled away from the centerline of the barrel toward the hammer. The Sharps rifle uses a firing pin block to solve this alignment problem. The block sits within a recess in

192-430: A spring -loaded hammer , in the same fashion as a punch or chisel relays the blow from a mallet . In firearms terminology, a striker (or striker mechanism) derives the impact force to strike the primer from a spring acting directly upon the firing pin – similar to a crossbow , where the striker (firing pin) is like the crossbow bolt (arrow). A striker mechanism is very common in bolt-action firearms but not to

240-642: A barrel to a higher muzzle velocity than a heavier projectile. However, a lighter projectile may not fit in the barrel, because it is too thin. To make up this difference in diameter, a properly designed sabot provides less parasitic mass than if the flight projectile were made full-bore, in particular providing dramatic improvement in muzzle velocity for APDS ( Armor-piercing discarding sabot ) and APFSDS ( Armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot ) ammunition. Seminal research on two important sabot configurations for long rod penetrators used in APFSDS ammunition, namely

288-407: A bolt action rifle is opened by first rotating the bolt handle . In cock-on-open operation, this rotation acts on a cam (similar to the action of a screw thread ) which retracts the striker, compressing the cocking spring and holding it there. When the cocking handle is rotated closed, the cocking cam disengages but the striker is retained in the cocked position by the trigger sear. Introduced in

336-409: A bullet requires at least 1 turn in 7 inch twist, (1:7 rifling), in 5.56mm, it will also require at least 1:7 rifling when saboted in 7.62mm. However, larger caliber commercial rifles generally don't need such fast twist rates; 1:10 being a readily available standard in 7.62mm. As a result, the twist rate of the larger barrel will dictate which smaller bullets can be fired with sufficient stability out of

384-425: A firing pin or striker to initiate detonation . Such devices include: artillery projectiles , aerial bombs and land mines . In landmines, non-metallic firing pins, made from ceramics for example, may be used to minimise their magnetic signature . The M127A1 signal rocket (and other similar flares ) have a primer in the base of the disposable launch tube. The cap contains a fixed firing-pin inside. The flare

432-427: A floating firing pin is one which is unrestricted by a firing-pin return spring or similar. While it will be captive and unable to simply fall out, either forward or backward, it is otherwise free to slide within these stops. The trapdoor Springfield Model 1865 is an example of a floating firing pin. Hammer-operated firing mechanisms use a relatively light firing pin and rely on a transfer of momentum received from

480-414: A form of spindle sabot. Shotgun slugs often use a cast plastic sabot similar to the spindle sabot. Shotgun sabots in general extend the full length of the projectile and are designed to be used more effectively in rifled barrels. A ring sabot uses the rear fins on a long rod projectile to help center the projectile and ride the bore, and the multi-petal sabot forms only a single bulkhead ring around

528-416: A hardened, rounded tip that strikes and crushes the primer . The rounded end ensures the primer is indented rather than pierced (to contain propellant gasses). It sits within a hole through the breechblock and is struck by the hammer when the trigger is "pulled". A light firing-pin spring is often used to keep the firing pin rearward. It may be termed a firing-pin return spring , since it returns it to

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576-423: A hole in the breechblock along the axis of the center of the barrel 's bore. Rimfire cartridges however, must be struck on the base about the rim of the cartridge. While rimfire firearms may use a firing pin with a round cross-section, it is common for them to be flat, with a square or rectangular cross-section and a blunt chisel point. Flat firing pins can be stamped from flat metal stock and usually operate in

624-538: A lower drag, smaller diameter and lighter bullet, successful saboted projectile design has to include the resulting bullet stability characteristics. For example, simply inserting a commercially available 5.56mm (.224) bullet into a sabot that will fire it from a commercially available 7.62mm (.300) barrel may result in that 5.56mm bullet failing to achieve sufficient gyroscopic stability to fly accurately without tumbling. To achieve gyroscopic stability of longer bullets in smaller diameter requires faster rifling. Therefore, if

672-430: A narrower projectile with high sectional density to be fired through a barrel of much larger bore diameter with maximal accelerative transfer of kinetic energy . After leaving the muzzle , the sabot typically separates from the projectile in flight, diverting only a very small portion of the overall kinetic energy. The sabot component in projectile design is the relatively thin, tough and deformable seal known as

720-434: A paper cartridge with a priming as part of a sabot which cradles the projectile and is forward of the propelling charge. The needle-like firing pin projects from the bolt-face and pierces the cartridge when the breech is closed. On firing, the spring-loaded needle strikes the priming in the sabot. Unlike Pauly's cartridge, which was not widely accepted, Dreyse's rifle was adopted by Prussia as its infantry service rifle . It

768-506: A projectile, providing both structural support and obturation. Upon firing, when the sabot and projectile leave the muzzle of the gun, centrifugal force from the rotation of the projectile, due to barrel rifling, opens up the segments surrounding the projectile, rapidly presenting more surface area to air pressure, quickly releasing it. Although the use of cup sabots of various complexity are popular with rifle ammunition hand-loaders, in order to achieve significantly higher muzzle velocity with

816-430: A rear section which both centers the projectile, provides a structural "bulkhead", and seals propellant gases with an obturator ring around the outside diameter. Spindle sabots are the standard type used in modern large caliber armor-piercing ammunition. Three-petal spindle-type sabots are shown in the illustrations at the right of this paragraph. The "double-ramp" and "saddle-back" sabots used on modern APFSDS ammunition are

864-613: A sabot. In this example, using 1:10 rifling in 7.62mm restricts saboting to 5.56mm bullets that require 1:10 twist or slower, and this requirement will tend to restrict saboting to the shorter (and lighter) 5.56mm bullets. A base sabot has a one piece base which supports the bottom of the projectile, and separate pieces that surround the sides of the projectile and center it. The base sabot can have better and cleaner sabot/projectile separation than cup or expanding cup sabots for small arms ammunition, but may be more expensive to manufacture and assemble. In larger caliber APDS ammunition, based on

912-426: A slot cut in the breechblock (rather than a hole) that is parallel but offset from the centerline of the barrel. These production methods are generally simpler and reduce production costs. It is generally recommended not to excessively "dry fire" rimfire firearms (ie firing without a chambered round) as it is possible for the firing pin to strike the face of the camber and deform it or damage the firing pin. In 1808 by

960-421: A spring guide for the striker spring, a shoulder to restrain the spring, and a catch piece which is engaged by the trigger sear to hold the spring under tension when "cocked" and ready to fire. The striker spring is compressed between the striker's shoulder and the rear of the breechblock. A striker may be assembled from several component; however, the stored energy in the striker spring is transferred directly to

1008-406: A striker is a particular type of firing pin where a compressed spring acts directly on the firing pin to provide the impact force rather than it being struck by a hammer . The terms may also be used for a component of equipment or a device which has a similar function. Such equipment or devices include: artillery , munitions and pyrotechnics . The typical firing pin is a thin, simple rod with

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1056-512: A striker-operated firing mechanism but are actually a type of linear hammer . The hammer can be likened to that of a pile driver and is mainly contained within the bolt. It is much like the striker already described except that the "hammer" upon which the firing spring acts and the firing pin are separate units. Confusingly, parts lists will often refer to this type of hammer as a "striker". Striker-fired (or similar) bolt action firearms may be classified as cock-on-close or cock-on-open . When

1104-455: Is fired by placing the cap over the base and striking it by hand. Hand grenades of the type that use a safety lever (such as the M26 grenade ) use a striker that is similar to the classic spring-loaded mousetrap . It is held under tension until the lever is released and then flips over to strike the primer cap. Some chemical oxygen generators use a primer and mousetrap type striker to initiate

1152-442: Is known classically as windage . More detailed cutaways of the internal structural complexity of advanced APFSDS saboted long rod penetrator projectiles can be found in #External links . The function of a sabot is to provide a larger bulkhead structure that fills the entire bore area between an intentionally designed sub-caliber flight projectile and the barrel, giving a larger surface area for propellant gasses to act upon than just

1200-543: The M829 series of anti-tank projectiles). Sabot-type shotgun slugs were marketed in the United States from about 1985, and became legal for hunting in most U.S. states. When used with a rifled slug barrel , they are very much more accurate than normal shotgun slugs. A cup sabot supports the base and rear end of a projectile, and the cup material alone can provide both structural support and barrel obturation. When

1248-623: The Mauser Model 1871 , it significantly reduced the risk of accidental discharge upon closing. The system of operation was widely adopted and is used almost exclusively in modern centerfire rifle designs. The Mauser Gewehr 98 , the Mosin–Nagant and M1903 Springfield are examples of service rifles using this type of operation. Modern era guns in general (and not just firearms) use a firing pin of some description to initiate firing. Mechanical contact fuzes in explosive ordnance will employ

1296-521: The "saddle-back" and "double-ramp" sabot was performed by the US Army Ballistics Research Laboratory during the development and improvement of modern 105mm and 120mm kinetic energy APFSDS penetrators and published in 1978, permitted by the significant advancement in the computerized finite element method in structural mechanics at that time; and now represents the existing fielded technology standard. (See for example

1344-463: The Swiss gunsmith Jean Samuel Pauly in association with French gunsmith François Prélat created the first cartridges to integrate a primer and be self-contained. The paper cartridge used a metal base with a through-hole coated in a percussive priming compound. Pauly also developed a breech-loading shotgun for his cartridge, using a firing pin and external hammer. The Dreyse needle gun of 1836 uses

1392-438: The base of the smaller flight projectile. Efficient aerodynamic design of a flight projectile does not always accommodate efficient interior ballistic design to achieve high muzzle velocity. This is especially true for arrow-type projectiles, which are long and thin for low drag efficiency, but too thin to shoot from a gun barrel of equal diameter to achieve high muzzle velocity. The physics of interior ballistics demonstrates why

1440-444: The bolt fully closes on the breech the primer of the newly chambered round is struck, causing the cartridge to fire. The Owen and F1 submachine gun are examples that use bolt-face fixed firing-pins. Some mortars use a fixed firing pin mounted in the breech plug. When a mortar round is dropped down the barrel, a primer in the base of the mortar round strikes the firing pin and ignites the propelling charge. In firearms terminology,

1488-529: The breech is opened and retracted rearward, the striker is also carried rearward so that the striker catch passes over the trigger sear. When the bolt is pushed forward to close the breech, the striker catch is held by the trigger sear. The firer must close the bolt with sufficient force to overcome the force exerted by the cocking spring. Notably, the Lee–Enfield and Belgian Mauser cock on closing as do many small-caliber rimfire bolt-action rifles. The breech of

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1536-407: The breechblock. When struck by the hammer, the whole block is propelled forward. That part of the block with the firing pin sits on the centerline of the barrel and strikes the primer. Many revolvers use a firing pin that is fixed to the hammer. Simple blowback sub-machine guns that fire from the open-bolt position often have a fixed firing pin that protrudes from the face of the bolt. As

1584-620: The cartridge case, an obturator or driving band. When the projectile is fired, the sabot blocks the gas, provides significant structural support against launch acceleration, and carries the projectile down the barrel. When the sabot reaches the end of the barrel, the shock of hitting still air pulls the parts of the sabot away from the projectile, allowing the projectile to continue in flight. Modern sabots are made from high strength aluminum and graphite fiber reinforced epoxy. They are used primarily to fire long rods of very dense materials, such as tungsten heavy alloy and depleted uranium. (see for example

1632-425: The chemical reaction. Sabot (firearms) A sabot ( UK : / s æ ˈ b oʊ , ˈ s æ b oʊ / , US : / ˈ s eɪ b oʊ / ) is a supportive device used in firearm / artillery ammunitions to fit/patch around a projectile , such as a bullet / slug or a flechette -like projectile (such as a kinetic energy penetrator ), and keep it aligned in the center of the barrel when fired. It allows

1680-432: The cup, expanding cup, and base sabot concepts, significantly more complex assemblies are required. A spindle sabot uses a set of at least two and upwards of four matched longitudinal rings or "petals" which have a center section in contact with a long arrow-type projectile; a front section or "bore-rider" which centers that projectile in the barrel and provides an air scoop to assist in sabot separation upon muzzle exit, and

1728-507: The development of the M829 series of anti-tank projectiles beginning with the base model M829 in the early 1980s, to the 2016 M829A4 model, employing ever longer "double-ramp" sabots). Upon muzzle exit, the sabot is discarded, and the smaller flight projectile flies to the target with less drag resistance than a full-bore projectile. In this manner, very high velocity and slender, low drag projectiles can be fired more efficiently, (see external ballistics and terminal ballistics ). Nevertheless,

1776-416: The exclusion of hammer-operated mechanisms. It is also found in other actions where the breechblock reciprocates directly inline with the axis of the barrel. A striker mechanism will consist of the striker spring (firing spring) and the striker. The striker spring is a relatively strong spring sufficient to initiate firing. A typical striker consists of a narrow striking point, a heavier section that acts as

1824-586: The pistol, again chambered in 9mm Luger and .45 ACP. In March 2020, Ruger introduced the American Pistol Competition, chambered in 9mm, and the American Pistol Compact with gray Cerakote finish, chambered in .45 ACP. Firing pin A firing pin or striker is a part of the firing mechanism of a firearm that impacts the primer in the base of a cartridge and causes it to fire. In firearms terminology,

1872-428: The projectile near the front, with an obturator sealing gases from escaping past it, and centering the front of the projectile. The former Soviet Union favored armor-piercing sabot projectiles using ring sabots, which performed acceptably for that era, manufactured from high strength steel for both the long rod penetrator and ring sabot. The strength of the steel ring was sufficient to withstand launch accelerations without

1920-431: The projectile outer diameter and the barrel inner diameter, usually a few thousandths of an inch; enough of a gap for high pressure gasses to slip by during firing. Driving bands and obturator rings are made from material that will deform and seal the barrel as the projectile is forced from the chamber into the barrel. Sabots use driving bands and obturators, because the same manufacturing tolerance issues exist when sealing

1968-401: The sabot and projectile exit the muzzle of the gun, air pressure alone on the sabot forces the sabot to release the projectile. Cup sabots are found typically in small arms ammunition, smooth-bore shotgun and smooth-bore muzzleloader projectiles. Used typically in rifled small arms (SLAP, shotguns, and muzzleloaders), an expanding cup sabot has a one piece sabot surrounding the base and sides of

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2016-442: The saboted projectile in the barrel, but the sabot itself is a more substantial structural component of the in-bore projectile configuration. Refer to the two armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot ( APFSDS ) pictures to see the substantial material nature of a sabot to fill the bore diameter around the sub-caliber arrow-type flight projectile, compared to the very small gap sealed by a driving band or obturator to mitigate what

2064-421: The striker and then to the primer without any intermediate transfer of energy or momentum. As striker mechanisms combine both functions of hammer and firing pin in one piece, they are generally considered to be mechanically simpler but are more robust in construction than a typical firing pin. Many small- caliber rimfire bolt-action rifles and some centerfire automatic weapons (e. g., vz. 58 ) may appear to have

2112-412: The transfer of momentum from the hammer to give the firing pin sufficient impact energy to cause firing. The two main types of metallic cartridges used in modern firearms are centerfire and rimfire . In centerfire cartridges, the primer is located in the center of the base of the cartridge. Firing pins for centerfire cartridges usually have a round cross-section and their movement is usually through

2160-404: The unfired position. In semi-automatic firearms , this prevents premature firing from the inertia of the firing pin as the breech mechanism closes in the reloading part of the firing cycle. Firing pins of this type are often too short to contact the primer when the hammer is resting against it. This is a safety measure to prevent discharge from external forces such as a drop. Firing relies upon

2208-414: The use of a sabot is advantageous to achieve higher muzzle velocity with an arrow-type projectile. Propellant gasses generate high pressure, and the larger the base area that pressure acts upon the greater the net force on that surface. Force (pressure times area) provides an acceleration to the mass of the projectile. Therefore, for a given pressure and barrel diameter, a lighter projectile can be driven from

2256-834: The weight of the sabot represents parasitic mass that must also be accelerated to muzzle velocity, but does not contribute to the terminal ballistics of the flight projectile. For this reason, great emphasis is placed on selecting strong yet lightweight structural materials for the sabot, and configuring the sabot geometry to efficiently employ these parasitic materials at minimum weight penalty. Made of some lightweight material (usually high strength plastic in small caliber rifles, (see SLAP Saboted light armor penetrator ), shotguns and muzzle loader ammunition; aluminium, steel, and carbon fiber reinforced plastic for modern anti-tank kinetic energy ammunition; and, in classic times, wood or papier-mâché – in muzzle loading cannons). The sabot usually consists of several longitudinal pieces held in place by

2304-518: Was the first military breechloader to use a self-contained cartridge and consequently, the first to employ a firing pin. The pinfire cartridge patented in 1835, uses a metallic cartridge with an integrated firing pin located radially near the base of the cartridge. The pin needs to be aligned with a corresponding slot in the chamber; a disadvantage compared with rimfire and centerfire cartridges that followed and that are also safer. Early rifle designs that fired metallic cartridges typically used

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